Significantly fewer businesses in Taiwan are planning to hire new staff in the fourth quarter of this year. That’s the word from an online job broker on Monday. The broker said that’s mainly due to planned minimum wage hikes and the latest food safety scandal.
A survey of 588 businesses conducted in September by the 1111 Job Bank found that 50.5% of the respondents intend to hire in the fourth quarter. That’s down 70% from last quarter and 63% lower than last year.
The government has decided to raise the monthly minimum wage to NT$20,008 and the hourly minimum wage to NT$120 starting from next July. More than 30% of the respondents said the increases will affect their operations, with labor costs expected to rise an average of around 7%.
The job bank said that many food retailers and restaurants have taken a wait-and-see approach toward hiring. This is because the recent food safety scandal has undermined consumer confidence in restaurants and eating establishments, and that’s had an effect on many food-related businesses.